birding surrey sussex border area (1 Viewer)

[mags]

can nayone tell me some good sites for birding and taking pictures around the the gatwick area thank you

 

[gropperwinch]

On the sussex side Weir Wood Reservoir and Ashdown Forest are definitely worth a look

 

[JohnnyH]

Warnham LNR near Horsham is worth a look, they have feeders there which are hidden by a screen from which you can take photos & attract all the common woodland species + Marsh Tit. Could also try Buchan Park at Crawley which has similar species + poss Crossbill.

John.

 

[mags]

thank you liam and john, much appreciated

 

[delia todd]

Then again, I suppose, it depends on how near is 'near'

Here's the link for the Sussex articles and the Surrey ones in Opus.

D

 

[Surreybirder]

Hi, Mags, there's a lot of info on the WWW.
http://www.fatbirder.com/links_geo/europe/england_surrey.html
http://localgroup.webs.com/
http://www.sbclub.ukonline.co.uk/index.html
http://www.eastsurreyrspb.co.uk/
are all worth checking out.
You don't live all that far from Pulborough Brooks RSPB. I would recommend Holmethorpe Sand Pits (also known as Mercer's Country Park) but not after dark!
I live near Hedgecourt Lake (up Mill Lane off the A264 towards East Grinstead) which can be good (although it gets disturbed by sailing at weekends). Weir Wood Reservoir can also be productive (just SW of East Grinstead). Photography obviously tends to be easier where there are hides... although you can also get quite a lot of disturbance at some of the more accessible ones.
It might be worth joining Surreybirders yahoo group.
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/SurreyBirders/
http://www.birders-online.co.uk/ is also worth a look.
Hope that helps,
Ken

 

[mags]

thank you ken, i will look into all of those

mags

 

[Epsomsalt]

thank you ken, i will look into all of those

mags

Hi Mags,

Myself and my wife are in Horley and tend to go to Holmethorpe Lakes (Park Nr. the Linden Homes showhouse at the watercolour development Nr Merstham/ Redhill) and there is a new path done by the developers that takes you round all the lakes. Cross the road and you will see the sign for Mercers Lake which you can also walk around.

I also go to Weirwood reservoir quite a bit - the nearest hide (that I know about) can be found here.

Pulborough Brooks RSPB & Amberley Wild Brooks are about an hour away whilst a further 10 / 15 minutes will get you to the WWT in Arundel - always a great day out - great views of nesting Terns etc.

Burton Mill Pond is another good spot within your radar.

If you like seabirds / waders my favourite spot is Pagham Harbour, which takes abour an hour and 10 minutes or so to the visitor centre there. Pagham offers great variety - there are hides both near the Visitor Centre (just past Sidlesham on the Selsey Road) and at Church Norton. From Church Norton you can walk onto the beach for a bit of seawatching or follow the fencing over to the right to farmland / woodland for a circular route back to the church car park.
There is another hide if you go to Pagham Village and go down Sea Lane up the bumpy lane to the car park at Pagham Lagoon. The car park is about a 5 minute walk. You can also walk down to the harbour itself and come back via the beach. Finally there is another good viewing area for Birds at Pagham, the Old Salt House. From Pagham Village drive down Church Road past the caravan Holiday Village and just keep going until the road ends. Park on the right hand side of the road and walk back to the end of the road and turn right. The Old salt House, open at weekends, is about 400 yards down the lane. There is a list of recent sightings in the window of the Old Salt House.

A bit nearer to home there are also a couple of lakes at newdigate (Nr. Dorking).

Finally, I recommend you think about joining the Crawley and Horsham RSPB Group (http://www.rspb.org.uk/groups/crawley) who generally meet at Friary Hall in Crawley on the third wednesday of the month - next meeting weds 21st April at 8:00pm (Talk by John Eyre on Chile - Birding in the land of the Condor). The club also have field trips each month which gives you the chance to explore new birding areas with people who know the area well (we only moved to Horley in December last year!).

Hope this helps.

Chris

 

[mags]

hi chris
thanks you for so much information, i too am in horley!
i really want to start not to far from home and then maybe ripple out
you have been a great help

mags

 

[joannec]

Hi Mags, I agree with all the above info. Another location to add: There is also Bough Beech Reservoir, it's actually in that little bit of Kent that adjoins Surrey, East and West Sussex and not too far from you I think, between East Grinstead and Tunbridge Wells. It's pretty good.

If you like Heathland birding, there is an Ashdown Forest birdgroup, PM me if you are interested.